Bremont MBIII

What Happens When You Wear A $6,500 Watch To A British Bachelor Party?

This article was originally published by AskMen UK — so please excuse the Britishisms. Yes, they really call bachelor parties "stag dos" over there.

There are certain things a man needs when going on a stag do. A firm constitution and a sense of humour figure highly, as do an absence of self-awareness and several changes of clothes. If the same man is taken to wearing a wristwatch, he also needs one of two things — a cheap piece of plastic quartz that can get trodden on, drowned, lost or stolen; or a proper timepiece built to withstand far worse.Bearing my own advice in mind ahead of a recent stag do, and preferring not to opt for the former, I approached the only company I could think of who possibly wouldn’t mind lending me a watch for such an occasion ­— that most British of luxury watch brands, Bremont.When it came to submitting the request, I tentatively fessed up that I wanted to borrow the brand’s ludicrously wearable MBIII for, yes, a stag do. The reply was, word for word, thus: ‘Robin, the MBIII has survived worse than a stag do. So yes, of course you can borrow one.’

Now that I’ve handed it back without so much as a scratch on it, perhaps I can list some of the things I put it through.First, there was the dinghy race down the canal, which involved an incredible display of inept, splashy rowing; a fatal puncture no more than 50 yards from the finish line; a consequent sinking; and, I can only surmise, a close brush with Weil’s disease.Then there was the mad dash down to the beach, which at that moment was being pelted by a gale force wind, a sandstorm and a flurry of airborne, highly corrosive seawater.Also, there was a pub-crawl. Which involved — well, it was a pub-crawl.I’ll be honest. I probably wouldn’t have taken one of my own watches with me on a stag do. At least, not one that was worth more than £50. But I promise, the reason I was happy to wear the MBIII was not simply because it wasn’t mine (although that probably helped), but because I had absolutely no doubt it would cope just fine. Heck, throw in potholing, coasteering, bungee jumping and a fight with the local branch of the EDL, and I’m pretty sure it would have come home just the same.After all, this is a watch that has been tested to put up with the explosive impact of being ejected from a Martin-Baker ejector seat (hence ‘MB’). It’s been put through shock, vibration, temperature and salt-fog tests; its case is hardened to 2,000 Vickers (about three times that of normal stainless steel); its movement is protected by an antimagnetic Faraday cage; it has a scratch-resistant sapphire crystal over its dial; and quite frankly, it finds the question of whether it can stand up to the rigours of a stag do somewhat insulting.If you think that means it’s the wrist-mounted equivalent of a Transit van, let me assure you nothing could be further from the truth. It’s a damn fine-looking thing, and more ruggedly masculine than the lovechild of Hugh Jackman and Matthew McConaughey. And before I go, I should probably let you know it has a second time zone and a movement that’s chronometer-certified for accuracy — neither is strictly necessary on a stag do, but you can never be too prepared, right?- £3,995, www.bremont.com